Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary disease: status artium (literature review)

The concept of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary disease (CTEPD) describes patients with persistent pulmonary thrombosis and symptoms but without pulmonary hypertension (PH) at rest. In the international literature, CTEPD is an all-encompassing term encompassing all symptomatic patients with post-thromboembolic pulmonary artery lesions as demonstrated by computed tomography pulmonary angiography and/or perfusion defects on pulmonary ventilation-­perfusion scintigraphy without ventilation defects, regardless of PH at rest. Russian experts have retained the historical term chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) for patients with PH at rest. In this review, we will examine key aspects of the diagnosis and treatment of patients with CTEPD without PH.